Healthy Cooking - Kitchen Preparation For Fat Burning Meals

I am going to take you around the kitchen real quick and show you some handy appliances and kitchenware that can get you through those tough times with your meal preparation. First off, as you see in my kitchen I have a little mini food processor. A food processor can be very beneficial for making different things like hummus and when you are finely cutting up vegetables for different recipes like soups and chillies. Even if you are trying to make a healthy dessert and you are trying to mix up some dried fruit or make some banana puree, using a food processor is perfect for things like that. It can be a pretty handy kitchenware item to have and I highly recommend it. Another great thing is that is doesn't take up a lot of space and it can come in handy on a regular basis.

Another item I tend to use all the time is called the Vidalia chop wizard. Any item that will finely cut up fruits and vegetables is great to have around the kitchen. This one works excellent for stir-fries, and any type of recipe where you will be cutting up a lot of vegetables. The clean up is super easy also and I like to leave it out on the counter to remind myself that I actually have it so I don't forget about it.

A tea kettle is another beneficial item to have in your kitchen. Tea is one of those beverages that is tremendously healthy and satisfies thirst very well. I like to leave the tea kettle out because tea is a regular mainstay of my nutrition regimen along with most of my clients.

A couple of important things you might not think about when it comes to a good kitchen, but they do come in handy on a daily basis, is having a handy utensil with a sponge on the end that you can put some soap in and then easily clean up dishes in a minute or so. Along with the cleaning sponge is having a good vegetable brush on hand. It is not too tough on vegetables and will not tear off the skin but it is firm enough to get off a lot of the extra pesticide, waxes and residues on all the fresh vegetables and fruits that we are all trying to include in our healthy nutrition program.

Having a good blender on hand is also very important. If you don't have a food processor, that's fine. The food processor and blender are kind of interchangeable for most recipe items such as hummus, salsas, dicing up a lot of veggies, and anything like puddings and dessert items. The blender works great for making smoothies, protein shakes and things like that. I highly recommend purchasing a quality blender and leaving it out on the counter because it's probably going to come in handy more often than not.

Don't forget to have a good pair of kitchen shears on hand. I think a lot of times people forget to have a good pair of these because they think they will just use a knife. From a safety standpoint, if you are trying to open a bag of frozen veggies or a bag of brown rice and you hold it by the top and try to slice the top off with a nice sharp knife, that's an accident waiting to happen. Just invest a few dollars in a good pair of kitchen shears and you'll save yourself a finger!

Obviously, mixing cups and measuring spoons are all important to have along with a can opener and a rubber scraper. I have my refills for the sponge utensil, a spatula, salad tongs and a nut cracker which is an excellent device if you get nuts that aren't already deshelled.

Having a good cooler on hand is very important. I am always curious why people who really want to follow a healthy diet regimen make the mistake of not having a simple cooler for their meals. I don't know how they get their day's worth of nutrition around with them to school, to work, on the bus, or wherever they're going. Having a good cooler and some ice packs is very important to good nutrition. This is one of those stop gaps that will get you on your way to better nutrition and help you reach your goals faster.

Lastly, I am going to tell you about a very important item that most people do not currently have in their refrigerator. That's the old fridge thermometer. The key is to make sure it's in the safe zone which is about 34 to 40 degrees. Get yourself a nice kitchen thermometer since it will help fight any potential foodborne illnesses. I hope my trip around the kitchen showed you some important things to keep on hand for successful meal preparation and healthy eating!

By Ryan Andrews